JohnD1956

Glad you are home safely! Good thing you found that cap otherwise the border security folks may not have been as forgiving about the suspicious looking electrical tape as Bruce...lol

That's the way to do it @Thriller… Which one is next? 😃

Well, if the engine temps were approaching 260 * while towing, but remain @ 195 * for several hours of highway driving without towing, then it seems to me that the towing is causing the trans to heat up and that is, in turn, heating up the engine by using the trans cooler in the radiator. And in that case, two separate auxiliary trans coolers piped in a tandum pattern in front of the condenser , and eliminating the trans cooler in the radiator as part of the system, should result in not much additional engine temps when towing. I am just thinking disconnect the trans lines at the radiator and plug the trans cooler ports with bolts. But I guess I would eventually remove that auxiliary cooler from between the condenser and radiator too. You have already changed this car for maximum efficiency while towing. I would not be concerned with originality at this point, but instead reliability. But that's just my point of view. And that heat sink looks interesting, but I would think the fore mounted trans coolers would be more efficient, and hardly visible inside that vast cavern between the grill and the condenser. And some of the reviews of the heat sink are not completely positive on the unit, although that seems to be more about the fit of the fittings. Hell, I'd even consider putting an electric pusher fan in front of those two prescribed trans coolers for even more airflow if stuck in traffic. I would not be pursuing a replacement radiator for one that held 195* steady for several hours of highway driving.

@Edwin The Kid I was wrong. You won't be able to spin the trans and locate the other bolts till the engine turns. So it looks like you are back to removing the crankshaft and transmission as a unit, and then unbolt the trans from the flywheel. ALSO, that blue bolt you circled looks like one of two drain bolts for the torque converter. The bolts holding the engine and torque converter together will be found in that ring of bolts around the outside edge of the converter cover.

The Office used to get these for us. Not sure if the new company still does this or not.

Maybe it would be a good thing to isolate the trans from the radiator by running one or two auxiliary coolers?

I was under the impression that the recirculate mode was not 100% recirculated air. It is mostly recirculated air with some fresh air percentage infused.

@MrEarlBtw. Did you take temp readings with the infared gun during your trip to Jordan's? Just wondering how it compares to the trial tow readings?

Great that you got the gas cap back. Probably cost you a point at judging time ,although damage on the way to a meet ought to not be counted as per previous year judges training. 🙂

Thanks NTX...I need to do that on the Electra. That high speed on recirculate is way too noisy and lack of a lower speed on recirculate is way too much AC for comfort.

That's what torque does... Dad's '65 Electra suffered 3 set of motor mount failures...😜 IT was one reason he wanted to let it go.

may sound silly BUT, you did replace the distributor after the manual priming, right?

Jiggle the fan switch on high. That's been my experience, A little to the left worked on my former '78

To those to whom it may apply, no matter how loosely! HAPPY FATHER'S DAY 2019

I am sure you could buy one of those in the auto parts house.

(hope you don't mind if I borrow that @MrEarl )

With more than 110 cars ( at last count) in attendance, I found a few vehicles I thought particularly interesting. Here is one for @Thriller and @Brad Conley The 31 year old female owner was so proud to have this car here! It was recently pulled from storage, and they had not had the opportunity to run the car yet, so parked it on the trailer. We wished them good luck in the resurrection. Also this neat 36 arrived. Not photographed were the 1940 Century and the two 53 Specials, which have all been recorded in the past on these forums And then this car arrived. And I'm certain you'd say, hmmm,,, so what? Except we then realized: A Wildcat, with 3 speed, on the column! When asked, the driver told us his mom had bought it new in '64, without power steering or brakes. I believe, but don't quote me, that is a Custom level trim package? I gotta think this is among the rarest Buicks I have ever seen! And while we, in this forum, often say: to each his own! I have to ask: Why? Of course it is none of my business but I intend to taunt my two Old's guy brothers with these photos too. lol And here is one more I would house in my garage if I could: Yes, it is a factory 409 /4 speed with bucket seats! The Dealership brought some vehicles too.. Including the '25 which I have also photographed before. . So with that, if you are still reading this, I'd like to wish everyone to whom it applies, a Happy Father's Day!

Yesterday the conducted its 11th annual with the valuable assistance of our chapter sponsor (please ignore the caution sign laying on the floor🙄) This is a Cruise-In open to all, and is run for fund raising purposes, supporting the charity that the Dealership chooses. This and the past several years it has been for the Boys and Girls Clubs. This is an evening event, starting @ 3 pm, and lasting till usually 7-8pm, depending on weather. It features a Chinese Auction and 50/50 with a registration process where the first 100 attendees who make a donation to the Charity receive coupons to use at the onsite food vendors. It has been a fairly successful fund raising effort thanks to the generosity of all who attend. The food vendor did a brisk business, and my Daughter in Law and two Grandsons ( who are also members) came down for the day. They enjoyed several activities, like the well equipped playground in this extensive park, and the music of the DJ. Of course the ice cream was a big deal but they also looked at many of the cars. For them however, none of the activities were more fun than chasing The Chinese Auction had a group of fans too: Anyhow, back to basics, the car of the year was Bob and Marilyn's 41 Super 56 C And for whatever work I did, I had a chance to get a rare picture of the GS :

In addition, i feel compelled to point out that while it may not be illegal in some states, the rule was not changed at the Federal level, as far as I know. If anyone knows more I'd be interested to hear about that.

That is one uncooperative Buick! What did the prior owner do to that to cause it to act up so much? 😁 But now that you point it out, if the Catylitic Converter is still in there I wonder if that is partially plugged and causing the overheating situation? Miore likely it would cause a loss of power when exhaust gases got backed up but there is a chance that it is contributing to the higher engine temps. However, I can relate a story to you about a 69 Olds Cutlass without AC which used to run hot enough to light the light after a one or two hour highway run. It was observed when we got caught in traffic and it was remediated by increasing the engine idle and putting the heater on. But it was eye opening alright. And only to point out it may be the nature of the beast, so to speak.

What about the timing and the heat riser valve?

@MrEarlDid the radiator core fins get flushed? With garden hose nozzele, from the fan side to the front end ought to do it.

But unlike the crafty solution in the picture posted, be sure to include the drip trays for the Buick parts, which seem to leak even if there is no fluid in them to leak! 🙄

I don't know for a fact but the earlier BOP trans are different bell housing bolt patterns than the Chevy engine. What you need is a 70 Olds 455. I'd say Buick 455 but then you'd be in another whole world of changes to logistics under the hood.

Agree with Dei's last comments... And although it's nothing like driving to the National Meet, I did get the '56 out for a 30 mile round trip to the Wednesday Night Cruise in. First one I've made so far this year, and it was yet another great Buick ride. I have found a route that takes me round about and adds a few miles to the drive. But it avoids numerous traffic lights and heavy commuter traffic. And there I got the chance to park next to my friend Frank, who has taken steps to refurbish and slightly modify his 1960 Invicta. Refurbishment includes a new paint job outside and engine bay detailing. Also a new gas tank and all new fuel and brake lines. And he did the brakes with off the shelf rear shoes but relined front shoes, so as to maintain the correct shoe width that is no longer available on the shelf. Modifications include an Edelbrock carb, some new fangled ribbed valve covers with the word "Nailhead" cast in. Plus what appears to be a GM HEI distributor with a built in coil, and one of those alternators that looks like a generator. He also added dual exhaust. I did not get a picture of the engine bay. but will try to do so at this weekends event. He also put on Coker Classic wide whites in place of the bias ply wide whites he got with ownership of the car several years ago. On the outside the car looks original, while he is very satisfied with the modifications. I must admit that I have a real weakness for the intriguing chrome trim on the '59/60 Buicks